Blog Posts by Subject: Architecture

Archtober is an annual month-long celebration of New York City's built environment, with thirty-one "building of the day" sites. Here are seven locations that archi-lovers can explore any day of the year, using materials at NYPL.Read More ›

What's Open House New York? It's an invitation to explore the city. Every October, the five boroughs open up for the annual weekend—this year on October 14 and 15, with over 200 buildings and projects. Can't make it? In honor of the festival's fifteenth anniversary, I selected seventeen long-time participants you can explore more through NYPL resources.Read More ›

May is Preservation Month! I know, there are only a few days left, but you can celebrate Preservation Month all year long with great books and other resources from The New York Public Library.Read More ›

The Library has a number of items that highlight the development and presence of synagogues in New York City, including at least one photographic collection wherein Beth Hamedrash Hagodol features prominently. This post pays tribute to the building, with a short history, and a view back to better days.Read More ›

The New York Public Library's Stephen A. Schwarzman building opened on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street in 1911. One of NYC's iconic landmarks, it welcomes millions of visitors a year to discover its inspiring public spaces, unparalleled research collections, and vibrant programs and exhibitions. But that's not the whole story about the building behind the Library Lions.Read More ›

Architectural historian and New York Times columnist Christopher Gray died last week. He was 66. Milstein Division librarians took a moment to reflect on Gray's work, and his impact on the written history of New York City and research of its built environment. Read More ›

We've got a selection of engaging author talks coming up this month at the Mid-Manhattan Library. Come listen to scholars and other experts discuss their recent non-fiction books on a variety of subjects and ask them questions. Read More ›

Dr. Bailey Van Hook recently published the first full-length biography of artist Violet Oakley. In this interview, she discusses her work and what made Oakley an interesting subject, as well as her research in our archival collections.Read More ›

Last month, the 96th Street Library celebrated its 110th birthday. In that spirit, the staff at the 96th Street Branch would like to thank our community for supporting the Library throughout its history. Read More ›

Beach Pneumatic Transit Company built 312 feet of tunnel under Broadway from Warren Street to Murray Street. It closed in 1873 and the tunnel was used for a while as a shooting gallery, but even that did not pay, and for years the tunnel was neglected and the entrance was closed by an iron grating. Read more about the subway that could have been. Read More ›

Drawing as a form of inquiry... groundbreaking graphic designers... The U.S. a safe haven for Nazis... 1,000 years of visualizing the cosmos... a moment-by-moment account of Hurricane Sandy... the era of great American songwriting... the evolution of the painted nail...Read More ›

"Everybody in New York wants rapid transit, but, strange to say, the moment that anybody sets to work with a definite plan for its realization, they are vigorously opposed and the work prevented." Looking at some of the early proposed (and sometimes partially built) railways for New York City for which the Science, Industry and Business Library has visual materials.Read More ›

A new approach to health care reform ... 20 years of Harlem Street Portraits ... humanist architecture ... The Extreme Life of the Sea ... New York City's unbuilt subways ... mothers ... the power of storytelling ... a century of candy ... New York's lost amusement parks ... the public library ... 11 missing men of WWII ... great city planning.Read More ›

Gustave Eiffel who was born 15 December 1832 in Dijon, Côte-d'Or, France was much more than “just” the creator of the Eiffel Tower. A man of many passions and accomplishments, Eiffel attended high school at Lycee Royal where he studied engineering, history and literature. He graduated with a degree in both science and humanities. He first studied at the École Polytechnique but later transferred to the École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures in Paris, graduating in 1855 with a diploma in …chemistry. He was interested in construction from an early age and a couple of years after Read More ›

I realize that not many people can say that. It's akin to saying "I know a guy who knows a guy in New York City who once ate 300 sandwiches in a single sitting." Just within the realm of believability.

But I do. His name is Nate Bolt, and he lives in San Francisco. He was recently in New York for a conference, and wagering on the fact that he often travels with Lucy IV (as his drone is so lovingly named) (don't ask about Lucys I-III), I reached out to him about coming to the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building to shoot

Although I've lived in New York City for the past 35 years I grew up in New England with a traditional New Englander's point of view about living and spending—if you can't afford to buy it, don't, and if you decide to buy your home pay it off as soon as you can.

Certainly, not everyone has this point of view, and economists might say a slowdown in consumer spending could cause a slowdown in the economic recovery. Regardless, how and where people live fascinates me. I have spent many, many hours driving up and down streets in various neighborhoods in and out of

Would you consider New York City "age-friendly"? That is, is it a place where people of all ages—including the very old—can feel comfortable, safe, and happy?

One million people aged 65 and over call New York City home, and a half-million more are expected to swell those ranks by 2030. New York City's top-notch public transportation system and rich access to cultural institutions contribute toward making it a place where these folk will want to stay; most are not planning to leave for southerly climes anytime soon, if ever.